Monson roads repaired and opened after severe flooding

Submitted photo / Michael RoescherPart of Beebe Road was washed out during the severe thunderstorms.

MONSON – Town officials are reporting that all roads are now passable after severe flooding damaged at least three streets in the town and flooded dozens of others early Sunday morning.

A slow-moving thunderstorm drenched the town dumping as much as 5.8 inches of rain in three hours. The excess water caused streams, brooks and the town’s storm drains to overflow, said Gretchen E. Neggers, the town administrator.

Beebe and T-Peck roads and Chestnut Street all sustained damage. Most repairs made were temporary so the roads could be reopened. A variety of other streets, including parts of Route 32, were flooded and impassable during the storm but they were not damaged, she said.

There was no widespread property damage reported beyond flooded basements in the town which is still recovering from serious damage from the June 1, 2011 tornado, she said.

Emergency Management Director Evan Brassard and Chairman of the Board of Selectmen, Richard Smith did declare a state of emergency until the roads were cleared.

“It looks pretty serious but it isn’t a major disaster like the tornado was,” said Selectman Edward S. Harrison.

Harrison, who lives on Beebe Road, said there was a giant hole in the middle of his street. The Department of Public Works spent most of the day filling in the hole and clearing debris that came from a nearby brook which overflowed.

The water also carried a large amount of slit and boulders, some the size of footballs, down the street and deposited it in different spots. The bottom of his neighbor’s driveway was partly washed out and a pile of mud and stones was deposited in it, Harrison said.

Since Saturday, lines of slow-moving thunderstorms moved through and it poured in isolated areas, said CBS 3 meteorologist Mike Skurko, The Republican media partners.

While the National Weather Service estimated 5.8 inches of rain fell in three hours in Monson, nearby Brimfield received a small amount. The same thing happened in the Berkshires Saturday when Hancock reported 5.2 inches of rain in a short period of time while the neighboring Pittsfield received one inch, he said.